Clinging to the past leads to inactivity

Brad Lidge, left, closer for the 2008 World Series champs, retired as a member of the Phillies last week as the team, led by general manager Ruben Amaro Jr., tries to recapture that past success.

The Philadelphia Phillies always have done a good job honoring their past.

That has been on display during their current Alumni Weekend series against the Atlanta Braves at Citizens Bank Park.

It also was on display at last week's non-waiver trade deadline.

The Phillies and general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. continue to hang on to the memories of 2007-11, not to mention the players, and were surprisingly - inexplicably - inactive.

Even with the team - let's call them The Was Kids - floundering, Amaro opted not to deal any of the aging players. He kept guys such as infielder Michael Young, catcher Carlos Ruiz, closer Jonathan Papelbon and even left-hander Cliff Lee, putting the Phillies on almost everybody's list of trade deadline losers. Just another L in this disappointing season.

"I guess the bottom line was we didn't find anything that was satisfactory," Amaro said just after the deadline. "Nothing we thought was going to improve us. So we decided not to do anything."

In defense of Amaro, it's understandable why he didn't make a move just to make a move. A middling Class A pitcher, if that was all Amaro could get for a guy such as Young, isn't likely to ever contribute at the major league level. If that was the best he could do, maybe it's worth waiting and hoping someone gets desperate this month and offers a better deal.

But that's the problem. Too much of what the Phillies have relied on the last two seasons is based on hope, hope that past successes will repeat.

And Amaro's lack of action at the deadline showed even more how the Phillies are stuck having to rely on that hope and little more.

They have a declining, high-priced core. They have a monster payroll. And they have high expectations born from all that recent success.

Right now it's all detrimental.

Even though the evidence has been there for most of this season that the Phillies are not a playoff team, Amaro held out hope - there's that word again - and waited too long before he decided to sell.

"I have to think about 2014, and when I think about 2014, I don't think about coming in second or third or fourth place," Amaro during as his post-deadline talk. "I think about trying to win our division and trying to put us in a position to do that. Whether we can do that with younger players, or older players, or experienced players, that remains to be seen. That's part of our job, to design the club so that we can be a better club and contending club."

With that in mind it's easy to see why Amaro hasn't dealt Lee. A rotation that includes the ace lefty gives the team its best chance to contend in 2014.

But when rumors were floated last week about Lee being available, it caused some excitement. Amaro understandably wanted three or four of a team's top prospects, according to reports.

That kind of a haul would make me change my stance on keeping Lee. It would inject some much-needed youth, talent and depth into the organization. Provided the acquiring team paid most of the $70 million still owed Lee, it would free up money. It certainly would create a buzz.

Most importantly, it would signal a break with the past.

As difficult as that may be, to move forward the Phillies have to stop looking back.

No relief I

The other big Phillies story this week was closer Jonathan Papelbon.

The right-hander, who signed a four-year, $50 million free agent deal in November 2011, made headlines for comments he made a week ago in Detroit.

"I definitely didn't come here for this," he said to mlb.com's Todd Zolecki, referring to the team's losing ways.

Then he went on what the Phillies need to do that get things turned around.

"It's going to take, in my opinion, a lot," he said. "And in my opinion, I think it's going to have to be something very similar to what the Red Sox went through a couple years ago. From top to bottom."

Those comments, true though they may be, haven't gone over well.

It didn't help that Papelbon then blew the save and drew a chorus of boos in Thursday's 2-1 loss to the San Francisco Giants. It was his sixth blown save of the season, all since June 17.

For the record, Papelbon, whose velocity has been down, converted his first 13 save opportunities and had a 1.46 ERA in his first 24 games. Since, he has seven saves, the six blown saves and a 4.24 ERA in 17 innings over 17 games.

Despite those numbers and his performance Thursday, he didn't back down from his early comments.

"Whether I blow a game or whether I save a game, whatever is happening within the organization, I feel like I'm honest and forthcoming and I'm the same way after games like tonight," he said. "I accept things. I don't shy away from things."

Papelbon isn't the most likeable guy. He been struggling. As a relative newcomer in Philadelphia, he probably should have kept his mouth shut. But what he said has merit.

I wonder if things would be different if a guy more respected in Philadelphia, such as Chase Utley or Jimmy Rollins, suggested wholesale changes were needed.

No relief II

Jonathan Papelbon may be blowing saves at a seemingly alarming rate, but he's only halfway to the team record.

According to information on baseballreference.com, Mark Leiter's 12 blown saves in 1998 are the Phillies' single-season record. Leiter finished with 23 saves,.

Two other Phillies have blown 11 saves in a season: Brad Lidge in 2009 and Dick Selma in 1970.

Who's next?

Right-hander Curt Schilling was inducted into the Phillies Wall of Fame Friday.

Hard to see a can't-miss candidate for 2014, especially if they want to attract a Friday night crowd with a living honoree.

Three years ago, I wrote about the most deserving future candidates. John Kruk, Mike Lieberthal and Schilling are in off that list.

That leaves two deceased candidates: manager Danny Ozark, who went 594-510 and won three NL East titles in his seven seasons; and outfielder Roy Thomas, who played for the Phils from 1899-1908 and 1910-11.

One player not on the list who should have been was Von Hayes. The outfielder/first baseman, who came from Cleveland in a trade for five players, never got his due during his time in Philadelphia. In nine seasons with the Phillies, he hit .272 with 124 homers, 568 RBIs, 202 stolen bases and a .363 on-base percentage.